The Knicks’ search for the right end-of-bench mix has turned into a crowded little camp battle, and John Konchar is right in the middle of it.
New York brought in five veterans on Exhibit 9 contracts before training camp - Drew Eubanks, James Wiseman, Ochai Agbaji, Bruce Brown and Konchar - giving Leon Rose’s front office a group of non-guaranteed options to sort through in Tarrytown. The decision now is simple to say and tricky to make: who sticks as the Knicks figure out the final shape of their bench?
Konchar has a real case. If he makes the roster, New York would get another versatile wing behind Josh Hart and Jordan Clarkson, a useful two-way piece who can do a little of everything. That matters because Clarkson’s value last season went well beyond scoring, as he showed he can affect games with his rebounding and defense too.
The route Konchar took to New York is the kind of offseason chain reaction that makes the league feel smaller than it is. He was traded from the Utah Jazz to the Minnesota Timberwolves earlier this offseason, then Minnesota waived and stretched his contract to create space for free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga. The Wolves got their man, planning to plug Kuminga into the starting lineup, and the Knicks ended up with Konchar available on a bargain deal because of it.
There’s also a funny layer to all of this: New York may have helped set the whole thing in motion.
The Knicks’ front office was the one that offered enough to Minnesota in 2024 to pry away All-NBA big man Karl-Anthony Towns. More recently, the Knicks’ run to the 2026 NBA Championship may have helped push the Charlotte Hornets toward moving Ball. Charlotte chose to keep building around its younger players and made Ball available, leaving Minnesota to take on the rest of his $200+ million max contract.
The Timberwolves clearly weren’t shy about chasing a reset. This offseason, they traded Naz Reid and two first-round picks to build a new backcourt around Ball and Anthony Edwards.
After falling in the Western Conference Semifinals last season to the San Antonio Spurs, Minnesota made a major swing. The Spurs later reached the NBA Finals and lost to the Knicks.
Ball’s arrival was meant to help offset the loss of former Knick fan favorite Donte DiVincenzo, who is sidelined with a torn Achilles.
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